Lukhona



My legs trembled, but I forced myself to keep walking towards the principal’s office. As I entered, I saw two police officers standing there, along with my principal, who looked at me with sympathetic eyes. “Lukhona, these two police officers are here to talk to you,” he said, stepping back.

The female officer approached me with a calm and soothing voice. “We have found a dead woman’s body in the veld,” she said gently.

My mind was overwhelmed with questions, and my knees felt weak. The male police officer quickly came over and helped me sit down. “We want you to come and identify the woman,” she continued.

I couldn’t process everything that was happening. The world around me seemed to blur as I found myself inside the police van, sitting in the back seat with the officer beside me.

Outside, a crowd had gathered, all trying to catch a glimpse of the woman’s body covered in foil. The policewoman led me to where the body lay.

“Simply nod if you recognise the woman or shake your head, okay?” she said.

It felt as if I was floating, disconnected from my body, as I numbly nodded. The policewoman gestured to the coroner, and they revealed the woman’s face.

My body gave way as I collapsed to the ground, wailing uncontrollably. There, before my eyes, lay my mother’s lifeless body. The pain in my heart was unbearable, and I cried out in grief.

The policewoman hesitantly wrapped her arms around me, providing some comfort as I mourned my loss. The coroners covered my mother’s body again, and they went to work.

In just a few moments, my world had turned upside down. My sister and I were now orphans, left to face the harsh reality of life without our mother. The question echoed in my mind, haunting me: What had happened to my mother?